PASSENGERS flying back to Birmingham had to make an emergency stop in Canada - to go to the toilet.

PASSENGERS flying back to Birmingham had to make an emergency stop in Canada - to go to the toilet.

The pilot of the Boeing 767 from Mexico to Birmingham had to stop off in Goose Bay because passengers could not use the toilets in case they overflowed.

Ground staff at Cancun airport had forgotten to empty the toilets before take-off, leaving 295 passengers to cross their legs. Holidaymakers on the nine-hour flight were still three hours from Birmingham when they were banned from using the toilets.

The unscheduled stop meant that passengers on the flight landed in Britain almost 24 hours late.

One passenger said: "The pilot said there was a problem with the loo and we could not go to the toilet anymore.

"You can imagine what it was like. Everyone wanted to go. It was very uncomfortable.

"When we landed we could not leave the plane for another two hours until they emptied the toilet."

Passengers had to be put up in the air base barracks at Goose Bay until crew members had slept.

A spokesman for Thomson confirmed the flight was diverted due to a toilet problem but insisted they had been serviced correctly in Mexico.